Review: Bentley

Okay, I know this is a European cigar. I know samples were gotten at Inter Tabac and I know the site is in Dutch? Even translated, there wasn't any information on the company's webpage for this cigar. So, let's smoke it and see what we CAN find out.

Prelight: It’s hard to nail down an exact aroma from the wrapper, and I am mostly getting a lightly spicy and somewhat dirty, milk chocolate scent. It seems to be a light bodied tobacco, just from what I am getting here. The foot is stronger, with a dirty, barnyard aroma, with a background of chocolate. And a complete turn, the cold draw is very clean and light with a ton of cedar and a hint of cocoa.

Beginning: As expected from the prelight, the Bentley starts off in the upper range of mild. It isn’t bland though, just mild. The strongest note is a citrus zest, with notes of lemongrass and hay in the background. The end of this third has the addition of that chocolate aroma come through as a nice, semi-sweet powdered chocolate flavor. The burn is sharp, the ash is tight and the smoke is thick.

Middle: The Bentley jumps up into a solid medium in the second third. Make sure you aren’t puffing away too quickly here or the profile tends to get a tad bitter. Slowing down was an instant fix and the flavors return after a quick purge. There is a mix of cedar, citrus and a curious mix of baking spices. The burn and ash also remain very nice, clean and straight.

End: To end, there is a mix of wood and citrus notes mainly. Underneath, is that similar mix of baking spices and a semi-sweet chocolate powder note. Medium to low medium in body, the Bentley never gets very strong, but it does ramp up from the mild beginnings. The burn and ash continues perfectly, but you have to keep smoking at a very even pace to keep the heat down and the flavors in line.

Final Thoughts: I was pleasantly surprised by this cigar. I was not sure what to expect, but I feared that this European cigar wouldn't hit my palate well at all. But the flavors were there and the body was full enough to enjoy. There really weren't any negatives to this cigar, but it just didn't hit me where it needed to, to become a favorite.